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S’pore’s men’s Laser sailors book Rio berth

Cheng finished 15th at London 2012 and hopes he gets the chance to improve on that performance in Rio. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Cheng finished 15th at London 2012 and hopes he gets the chance to improve on that performance in Rio. Photo: GETTY IMAGES

SINGAPORE — Sailing in favourable conditions, Colin Cheng confirmed Singapore’s participation in the laser event for men at the 2016 Rio Olympics, when he made the cut for the top-tier gold fleet race at the 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championships in Santander in Spain.

Half of the Olympic sailing competition spots — which are awarded to nations and not sailors — are up for grabs at all races in the Spanish resort.

As Brazil also qualified for the World’s 24-boat gold fleet competition and already have an automatic Olympic slot as hosts in 2016, the remaining boats, including Cheng’s, all qualified for Rio.

Elizabeth Yin is also within striking distance of booking one of the 19 Olympic places available in the women’s laser radial, but with 33 countries fighting it out in the gold fleet, hers is a tougher task.

With the women’s 49erFX competition getting under way today, the Singapore duos of Dawn Liu and Joan Poh, and Griselda Khng and Sara Tan, will also be eyeing places in Brazil.

Cheng competed at London 2012, where he finished 15th, but whether the 24-year-old gets a chance to improve on that hinges on his performance at the trials which the Singapore Sailing Federation (SSF) will conduct closer to the Rio date.

But the sailor was relieved the business end of the Olympics for his class is completed, before he flies straight to the Asian Games, after competition ends in Santander on Thursday.

“The conditions here were tricky,” said Cheng.

“Since we arrived two weeks ago to prepare ourselves, there was fog throughout the races, and we had to sail through strong currents and swells. It was a real challenge to get decent results. So it is a big relief that we managed to secure a spot for the Olympics.”

After the Asiad in South Korea, it will be full steam ahead to make sure he follows through with the work in Santander and continue his intense training to make the cut for Rio.

Having sailed in Australia, New Zealand, France and Croatia before heading for Spain, SSF president Ben Tan is pleased with Cheng’s progress, but stressed that the organisation is looking at the sailor’s bigger-picture career.

“His initial races during the intensive phase were promising and showed that he was on track. The sailors have a few opportunities to qualify for the Olympics and it is a good sign that Colin qualified early.

“The sailors in the Olympic programme are very closely monitored and they also benefit from a very comprehensive long-term support programme that spans more than the Olympic cycle, into the next cycle,” Tan said.

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